


like puzzle pieces from the clay

by DragonEyez



Category: Friends at the Table (Podcast)
Genre: FatT Rarepair Swap, Gift Giving, I make the rules, Multi, Pre-Miracle of the Mirage, these gays are sappy and in love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-09
Updated: 2018-06-09
Packaged: 2019-05-20 05:41:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,376
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14888684
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DragonEyez/pseuds/DragonEyez
Summary: So I’ve been thinking.” Gig started, draping himself across Echo’s lap like a cat. They were used to his lack boundaries after months of close quarters and shared space, but they still need their own area sometimes, so they gently shoved him off. He moved over to Grand instead, completely unbothered. Grand made a few objections about the interruption to his “artistic process,” but he quieted down and used Gig as an elbow rest instead.“You’ve been thinking?” Even prompted.“Oh yeah! So I’ve been thinking, we’ve been on this mission for 6 months by my count, and I think we should do something to mark the occasion!”





	like puzzle pieces from the clay

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Poetry](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Poetry/gifts).



> so this is a week late whoops! hopefully you enjoy this still, it was fun to write and hopefully it's fun to read
> 
> title from [Such Great Heights](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9ow42XTx4I) by The Postal Service

“So I’ve been thinking.” Gig started, draping himself across Echo’s lap like a cat. They were used to his lack boundaries after months of close quarters and shared space, but they still need their own area sometimes, so they gently shoved him off. He moved over to Grand instead, completely unbothered. Grand made a few objections about the interruption to his “artistic process,” but he quieted down and used Gig as an elbow rest instead. 

“You’ve been thinking?” Even prompted. 

“Oh yeah! So I’ve been thinking, we’ve been on this mission for 6 months by my count, and I think we should do something to mark the occasion!”

Echo snorted. “You wanna throw an anniversary? I don’t know if you noticed but we’re short on celebratory supplies.”

Gig stuck his tongue out at them. It was ridiculously immature, but it was so _Gig_ that Echo barked out a laugh. “We don’t have to have a party. I was just thinking we could do some gifts or stuff.”

“Stuff.” “Where are we supposed to get gifts here?”

“Come on everyone!” Even interrupted. “I think it’s a sweet idea.”

“ _Thank_ you, _Even_. Making stuff from what you’ve got around was a big part of the Gambit, and I was thinking it would be nice if we could do that. For each other you know?”

“Well I am a master craftsman-” Grand started to say, but a Echo threw an elbow at him. 

“What he means is that it sounds like fun.”

“And also it’s kinda an anniversary thing too.”

\---

After some back and forth, the decided to exchange the gifts in a week. Which, in theory, was a sound idea. But, as Even watched the group scramble to figure out how to secretly go about making anything, he wondered if he should’ve pushed for more time. Their progress became nearly halved as everyone split their attention. Echo’s scouting missions got longer and longer, and Grand became far too distracted on designs that he’d apparently set so that only he could see them, and on more than one occasion, Gig and Even had to catch their boyfriend and keep him from falling flat on his face because he wasn’t paying attention to the uneven terrain. 

Gig seemed like the only one not running around like a chicken with its head cut off. He went to bed at his normal time and was only as hard to wake up as he ever was. Even could only guess what he was cooking up and had no way of knowing. Which left himself. Being the most combat experienced one in the group, Even couldn’t justify wandering off and he didn’t want to seem like he was hiding away, so he was stuck making outlines of possible ideas in the dirt around their nightly campfires. 

He was at a loss for what to give them. Realistically, they had everything they needed, and it didn’t make a whole lot of sense to lug around random things either. It wasn’t meant to be that big a deal, he knew that, but still he felt pressured to do something amazing. If he was on the Ever-Forward, he would plant them a garden. Something permanent, but useful. Something they could all use continuously, and take care of together…

The thought gave him an idea. They may not be on the Ever-Forward, but maybe he could still do something in the same vein.

\---

This was all Gig’s fault, Echo thought to themself as they scanned the horizon from their perch in a tree. They’d been at a loss for what to do for the last four days or so, and was getting frustrating. What could they give the others that wouldn’t seem...cheap in comparison to their gifts? Not pricewise, even if they had the kred to spend or even had any use for it there on Quire, they knew that _that_ , at least, wouldn’t be an issue. None of them would be so shallow as that. But they all had the Mesh, they could _do_ so much more than Echo could. Infinite layers with meaning upon meaning folded in. Echo had their own skills of course, more than just swinging a sword and being the bodyguard. But nothing they could do could be done realistically fast enough to meet the deadline, and they didn’t want to be the one who gave their gifts late, days after the fact. Nothing was more awkward than being given gifts and having nothing to offer in return. ~~Well that’s not necessarily true, they knew that in reality there were many things worse, but in this particular case this was the biggest one in their mind~~ , 

With a huff, they decided the path was clear of danger, and they pulled their jacket tighter against their shoulders, preparing themself for the descent back to solid earth. Wait. The jacket. Echo pulled it off, examining the elaborate embroidery on the back. This had taken a long time to do, it had been something to keep them occupied while they awaited sentencing. But they had thread with them, and they could do little things in the time they had left. 

Gig’s well-worn duffel bag, one of Grand’s less offensive shirts maybe, and Even’s military coat. Stealing them away would take a little work, but it wasn’t like they didn’t have _practice_ doing _that_.

That night, after dinner and debriefing and Gig’s last broadcast for the night, Even took the first watch and the other three went to bed. Or at least, Grand and Gig went to bed. Echo waited until they could hear quiet snoring coming Grands tent and then waited another fifteen minutes before creeping out of their tent and into his. Never had they been more thankful that Grand was a heavy and therefore oblivious sleeper. They dug through his backpack, rifling through one obnoxious neon flannel after another until, buried at the bottom of the bag, they found a nicer (and normaler) slinky white long sleeve shirt. This, Echo could work with. Next, Echo went to Gig’s tent. They felt a little bad, emptying Gig’s things onto the floor, but they squashed the feeling down, reminding themself that he’d have it back in a couple days. They piled it nicely as a consolation and stole out of his tent, back to their own. 

Now they just had Even’s coat left. That would be the most difficult to get. Even _loved_ that coat, and it he was probably wearing it at the moment to counteract the nighttime chill. Two out of three wasn’t bad for the time being, they decided, and after hiding Gig and Grand’s things with their own, they slid into their sleeping bag. 

\---

“EVEN! SOMEONE STOLE MY DUFFEL BAG!”

Grand groaned, trying to block out Gig’s yelling by smashing one of his pillows over his head. But it didn’t do much as Gig’s complaints got louder and louder. With a huff, he drug himself out of bed and emerged into the campsite, squinting against the sun.

“Ah, Sir-Grumps-A-Lot is up.” Even smiled broadly at him, and despite being staunchly anti-mornings, Grand managed to muster up a small one back. “Have you seen Gig’s duffel bag, he can’t find it anywhere.”

“So I heard.”

“Have you seen it?”

“Considering the fact that I was sleeping up until I was so rudely awakened, I think it’s safe to say that I haven’t.”

Echo threw a protein bar at his head, and Grand let out an indignant squawk, fumbling it before bending over to scoop it off the ground. “Don’t be an ass Grand.”

“I’m not being an _ass_ , I’m simply not a morning person.”

“AKA being an ass.”

“Nobody asked you.” Grand sat next to them, taking an aggressive bite of the protein bar, leaning into the warmth of their body.

“But for real, I need my bag.”

“I’m sure you’ll find it soon. It’s not like it grew legs and walked away.” Even patted Gig on the back. Now that Grand was a bit more awake, he furrowed his brow. It was really weird that Gig’s bag had just up and vanished. He knew he’d seen him with it yesterday, and he’d been using it as a pillow when they’d set up camp, so where did it go in that time?

They spent a half hour searching the camp for it, but eventually they had to give it up as a lost cause and pack up. Gig’s things were distributed amongst the other threes’ packs, and they were on their way before too long. Luckily though, as the day dragged on Gig didn’t seem too perturbed about his missing bag, so Grand thought it would be acceptable to return to his designs, making sure to keep Even in his periphery so as to not get separated from the others. ~~Not that that had happened before. Ever~~. He pulled up the designs he’d privatized as soon as he began, visible to him and him alone by some tinkering with the Mesh. It also prevented his sponsor from seeing them and trying to collect them. These designs were...highly personal, and the idea of anyone other than their intended recipients trying to lay claim to them made Grand’s stomach turn. The ruination of his artistic integrity aside! 

Grand had three screens open, one for each of his partners. People often forgot (not that Grand could blame them), that aside from being a renowned mech designer, he also did smaller art pieces, including statuettes and jewelry when the mood struck. And the mood certainly had struck. As much as he _wanted_ to design mechs for the others, he supposed it wasn’t _practical_ to design or assemble at the moment. For one, he didn’t have any time, let alone the proper materials at the ready. And he was certain that Even, Echo, and Gig would complain about having to use the mechs all day in order to bring them along. As he thought about it, he revised his opinion slightly. _Even_ probably wouldn’t mind, the man had an admirable affinity for any and all sorts of technology. Although Grand was still suspicious of the fact that a prototype of Echo’s gift had gone missing after Grand had set it between the two of them to reach for something else.

Surveying the screens thrown up in front of him, Grand flicked through layers, waiting to see which one would catch his interest. In his bored distraction, he tripped over...his own feet. Grand went _flying_ with a cry, screens vanishing as he threw his hands out to break his fall. Before he could become acquainted with the quickly approaching ground, he felt a strong grip on the back of his shirt. 

“Hey man!” Gig had his “I’m trying to be stern but I can’t stop laughing” voice on. “You need to pay more attention to where you’re going!”

Grand felt a flush of embarrassment creep up the back of his neck, and in lieu of a thanks, he grumbled, “Don’t grab my shirt like that, it’s _expensive_.”

“I mean I could just drop you. Or have let you fall in the first place I guess.”

“No no please don’t drop me. And delete that footage!”

With an easy laugh, Gig pulled him upright and gave him a quick kiss, soothing Grand’s wounded ego. After straightening his shirt back out and puffing out his chest a little, Grand muttered a thank you and pulled the screens back up, being much more aware of his surroundings this time. After a quick glance back at Gig, who was now hanging off of Echo’s shoulders, excitedly pointing out something that he was probably streaming before sending his eye out to it.

He shook his head slightly and closed out two screens, bring Gig’s into focus. 

\---

A week later, Gig’s bag was still missing, alongside Even’s favorite coat. Grand had nearly fallen on his face twenty-three times (something Gig’s viewers apparently found funny enough to make their own compilations of, which Gig had shown to the group until Grand finally got fed up with it), and they all learned that Even was incredibly bad at being nonchalant when he had a surprise under wraps. Gig was practically vibrating out of his skin by sundown, and none of them knew how they managed to wait til dinner to break out the gifts.

“Okay so how do we decide who goes first?” Echo asked. 

The four of them looked around at each other, shrugging. “Well I can go last!” Gig volunteered. 

“Rock, Screen, Lazer?” Even suggested.

“How old-” Grand’s complaint was cut short by Echo raising their hands with a determined expression, so he raised his own with a roll of his eyes. They beat him easily, but lost to Even, so the older man excitedly jumped up from his seat and disappeared into his tent for a few moments, returning with his hands clasped tightly together. When he returned to his seat, he looked at them all excitedly. 

“So on the Ever-Forward, sustainability is a big part of the culture, and one way we do that is with gardening. And, well, we can’t have a garden here, right now, obviously. But I thought I could do something reminiscent of that.” He revealed three necklaces, purple stones carved into the shape of a flower none of them knew the name for, but was something they had come across during their travels, strung up on leather cords. He passed one out to each of them, smiling sheepishly as he did so. Gig examined his thoughtfully, running his fingers over the charm. Grand and Echo put theirs on immediately, Echo tucking theirs under their shirt.

They all said some variation of “Thank you,” not knowing quite what else could be said. Echo rested their head against Even’s shoulder momentarily before reaching behind them, lifting their backpack. 

“Okay so let me say ‘I’m sorry,’ first. But I’m hoping you’ll like the gift enough to not be mad at me?” And they drew out one of Grand’s shirts, Even’s coat, and _Gig’s bag_. 

“My coat!” “My bag!” “Wait you went through my stuff?”

“I couldn’t really make anything per say, but I thought, well, you’ll see. Gig check the side, Even check the collar, and Grand check the pocket.”

The three men all looked at their respective things, grins wide as they saw the designs. Even proudly showed his off, a small yet intricate gear, stitched in colors that reflected the Mirage. Gig flipped his bag around, revealing a similarly detailed eye, also in the same colors as Even’s. Grand’s, however, was a mech sword, done in horrendously bright purple and neon green. 

“Why’s mine a different color than theirs?”

Echo grinned, a teasing edge to it. “I figured you like those flannels so much you’d want a little part of them with you no matter what.”

Grand had a look on his face, like he didn’t know whether to be insulted or touched. He must’ve picked touched, as he ran his fingers over the design before folding it carefully and setting it to his right. “Well, thank you, it’s lovely.”

“The cool design _totally_ makes up for the fact you stole this in the first place!” Gig yelled cheerfully, reaching around Even to pull them into a loose semi-hug. They smiled widely, looking proud of themself. 

“Well, you know what they say about saving the best for last.” Grand tossed three identically sized boxes to the others, watching them expectantly.

“Best, huh?” Echo teased. They pulled the lid off, pulling out a watch. Similarly, Even’s box revealed a four-pointed metal star, and Gig’s a series of chains.

“Um, what?”

“Well, there’s more to them!”

After a little fiddling with the objects, Even’s star folded out to reveal a holographic picture display with four empty slots. When he looked at Grand with a puzzled expression. Gig couldn’t tell if he was blushing or not in the low light and he was too focused on trying to untangle the delicate chains. 

“I figured you could use something for keepsakes. Memormius is big on retention, and the Ever-Forward is focused on sustaining, so photo frame seemed appropriate. I thought you could keep memories of Quire or- well I thought you’d like it.”

“Grand, it’s great. Thank you. It’s beautiful.”

“Well of course it’s beautiful, I made i-” Echo cleared their throat, and he cut himself off. “You’re welcome.”

“And what’s the deal with the watch. If anyone needs to be on time, it’s you.”

“It’s not a watch, it’s a compass. And it can map out places you’ve been with it. I thought it would be useful for-” he waved his hand around. “Y’know.” 

“That’s… surprisingly practical. Thanks.”

“HAHA!” Gig exclaimed, holding up two sets of chains with five rings attached to each. “I AM UNDEFEATED! Hey Grand what are these?”

“They’re fidget toys. The rings all have a middle part that spin and the chains can be detached.”

“That’s so cooooool!”

“I know.”

“Man, all your gifts were so cool, you kinda make mine look bad.” Gig rubbed at the back of his neck, and Even nudged him gently.

“That’s ridiculous. I’m sure yours is excellent.”

“Well, alright. Hold on a sec though I gotta go get something.” He leapt out of his chair and disappeared into his tent for a few minutes, leaving the others too look at each other confusedly. They heard a victorious cry, and he reemerged waving an ancient looking tablet. Even was impressed, he hadn’t seen one of those since he was a kid, the fact that Gig had one, let alone one that still worked, was impressive. 

“Here, I put it on this, so that Echo could see it too. Grand, come crowd in.” He smacked the side of it against his hand a few times before it flickered on, and his fingers hovered over a few buttons. “Okay, so I made this because I wanted you three to see you how I see you? I’m sorry for filming you when you didn’t know, but most of this was archived footage, none of it went up on a stream except for a few clips. So, here.”

He handed the tablet to Echo, who was now sandwiched between Even and Grand, and pressed play on the video. It was only a few minutes long, but it was packed full of footage of Grand, Even, and Echo. Sweet, tender moments between the four of them, Even and Echo pouring over maps and paths, Grand following after Echo, trying to convince them to be part of his werewolf project. Echo, practising with their sword in the early morning light. Grand, tongue stuck out in concentration as he worked on a particularly intricate design. Even, carrying Echo or Grand to bed when they fell asleep during the overlap of watch change. It was a thousand moments like that, one after the other, showing the three of them in ways they hadn’t realized anyone else had seen them. When the video ended, Echo wordlessly placed tablet in their bag, where it wouldn’t risk getting damaged, and reached over Even to haul Gig into their lap. When Even realized was happening, he helped lift the squawking reporter with a laugh. 

Echo wrapped him into a tight hug, and Even and Grand joined in.

“Okay so I guess you liked it then?”

“It was great.”

“I think we can call this anniversary a success.”

“Wait, hold on, how come I didn’t get a hug for _my_ gifts?”

Echo gave Grand a quick kiss. “There, feel better now?”

“Yes.”

“Okay as much as I’m loving the attention,” Gig started wiggling. “This is murder on my back. I’m all for group cuddles, but can we do it not with me laid over three different chairs.”

“I mean I _guess_.” Even teased. 

“ _Thank_ you.” Gig rolled out of their arms, landing on the ground with an “oof” and popping back up. “Come on, let’s zip the tents together.”

“Alright alright.”

After a bit of maneuvering, and Grand getting caught underneath a collapsed tent, the four of them crashed onto the mattresses they’d also pushed together, falling asleep with smiles on their faces.

**Author's Note:**

> as always, comments and constructive criticism is always welcome, and i can be found [here](https://theunacceptablepylades.tumblr.com/) on tumblr or [@queerlydeparted](https://twitter.com/QueerlyDeparted) on twitter. And if you like what I do, consider buying me a [coffee](http://ko-fi.com/queerlydeparted)


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